Knives Out (2019)

[Morrigan2575]

Power outage due to snow, figured it was a good way to keep warm and relax. I really enjoyed the movie I thought it was interesting and funny. I had the final reveal figured out early on but, I was curious to see how they got there and was hoping for one final surprise twist to shock me. 

All in all, this was a good who done it that I would watch again

[Angeleyes]

I was hoping on the murder mystery that Harlan’s games with his kids would somehow come into play and created a twist. I would have also loved it if the latter half of the movie became a thriller with someone in the family trying to kill Marta while she and Blanc try to figure it out before she dies. 

[vavera4ka]

that was just pure fun!

was it perfect? no, it had it's problems, but i didn't care.

Why didn't they let Craig use his British accent? too cliche? 

Daniel Craig in a suit is too much of an image with specific sound... maybe if he were wearing overalls and plaid shirt lol

[phalange]

This was so fun. When the reveal about Marta accidentally switching the meds was revealed fairly early in the movie, I figured there would have to be another twist. I was thinking that Harlan might have faked his death somehow, given his love of strategy and puzzles. And who could blame him, since he was a good guy with absolutely awful family members; I'd fake my death to get away from them too.

I liked the direction it ended up going, though, and Ransom Hugh absolutely deserved to get vomited on. And then Harlan's comment about Ransom not being smart enough to tell a fake knife from the real one came into play. Harlan knew him well. 

Lots of funny moments, like Ransom telling them all to eat shit, and then someone (Walt?) telling him that maybe Harlan left him a glass of milk in his will. The one cop making a Hamilton reference was great, as was Blanc and his continuous doughnut metaphor. The best, of course, was when the elderly grandma straight up cackled when it was announced Marta wouldn't be turning down the inheritance. 

Loved the end, with Marta looking down on all of those greedy assholes from the balcony, drinking from the "my house, my rules" mug. I hope she did end up cutting all of them off (except the grandma, who was awesome).

[IWantCandy71]

You could tell which ones in the theater were the Chris Evans fan girls because they laughed uproariously at the stupidest stuff he would say.

I've always thought Don Johnson was funny, though I don't agree with the "perfect casting" of him with Chris Evans as his son. I don't see a physical or a mannerism resemblance. I mainly wanted to see this for Jamie Lee Curtis. She is a gem and always has been, and I nominate her for all of Meryl Streep's future roles. She isn't cast enough in stuff, because Hollywood is stupid.

I hated the political aspects of it, and honestly I think everyone in the theater was suppressing a collective groan. I don't ever want to hear the terms "SJW" or "woke" ever again, especially not in a movie I'm paying to see. 

It was just okay to me. The cast/acting was really good. And I love mystery/suspense type movies. Hercule Poirot (David Suchet's version, Kenneth Branagh can have a seat) is one of my all time favorites as well as Sherlock Holmes and Columbo. I just felt it dragged. I think as I get older  my patience actually gets shorter, so part of it is me-I want brevity more than I want a long, drawn out exposition. Get to the point, in other words, and this movie took far too long to get there. I did laugh out loud a few times, and it was a nice distraction.

I think Daniel Craig's accent slipped/changed in noticeable moments and his  shtick kind of got old the longer it went on.  I will admit the donut hole speech was funny, and I wouldn't mind another movie with his character, if they flesh him out more. Anyone who has seen even one episode of Columbo knows that whoever the detective zeroes in on first (Marta) is his first suspect he is trying to eliminate. Of course he noticed the blood on the shoe !

I am glad for one thing- I went in unspoiled.  It does make a lot of a difference in the enjoyment of a movie these days, when spoilers are *everywhere*. The rotten tomatoes rating is ridiculous, though. It's a solid 8/B+ (again, because of the cast), but no more.

[vavera4ka]

Yeah Don Johnson ad Nash Bridges had a good comedic timing. So that didn’t surprise me. 
 

i could have done without “current events”. The setting and the tone were pretty timeless. Technology used here and there puts it into “our times” but doesn’t spoil it. The zeitgeist jokes do. 

[kitmerlot1213]

I thought the movies had some good twists, especially Ranson's not being as stupid as he seemed to be acting and there were some scenes that were damn funny.  I especially loved that none of the family seemed to know where Marta was originally from, was it Ecuador, Paraguay or Brazil or none of them?  And then during Don Johnson's character's speech about "how hard working immigrants are just like us", he's handing off he's used plate to Marta--DAMN!!  And I especially loved that the state trooper who knew all of Harlan's books immediately knew the name of the Hallmark movie starring Danica McKellar--that one made me laugh out loud.

I admit that I had to look away during the puking scenes--I would then start to wonder how none of the cops were grossed out by the smell and then it would take me out of the scene--but then I just tried to ignore it and focus on Ransom's doing himself in by confessing to Fran's murder and then trying to kill Marta with a fake knife.

And I'm sorry for being massively catty but when did Toni Collette get so hard looking?  She was downright unattractive in some of her scenes--DAMN!!

[Morrigan2575]

1 hour ago, kitmerlot1213 said:

And I'm sorry for being massively catty but when did Toni Collette get so hard looking?  She was downright unattractive in some of her scenes--DAMN!!

I think it was the makeup. They over did the spray on tan and then added makeup to make her look like a "typical" trophy wife. 

1 hour ago, kitmerlot1213 said:

admit that I had to look away during the puking scenes--I would then start to wonder how none of the cops were grossed out by the smell and then it would take me out of the scene--

Same and I like that they gave me cues so I could time the look away/eye covering. Not to add to the grossness but, I was terribly afraid that Daniel Craig was going to take a sip from the Big Gulp after the car chase.

Speaking of, I loved how they Detective commented "that was the dumbest car chase in history" LOL

[AshleyN]

Loved this. Super fun, a plot that was just twisty enough without feeling forced, a great cast led by what should be a star-making performance from Ana de Armas, and two of my absolute favourite lines of dialogue of the year:

"I read a tweet about a New Yorker article about you."

"What were the overheard words by the Nazi child masturbating in the bathroom?"

Not to mention that ridiculous (in a good way) doughnut monologue.

It was a clever take on the genre to essentially show us what happened so early, and to tie our perspective to Marta's instead of Blanc's, with the result being that the audience is left kind of rooting for the "brilliant detective" to fail. That being said, I did assume all along that there would end up being more to the story, and in particular that the naloxone didn't disappear from her bag by accident (plus, there was always the dangling plot threat of who hired Blanc and why). The reveal at the end wasn't necessarily shocking, but it was satisfying, which I think is more important. And that final shot was just perfect.

Edited December 4, 2019 by AshleyN

[Shannon L.]

35 minutes ago, AshleyN said:

Loved this. Super fun, a plot that was just twisty enough without feeling forced, a great cast led by what should be a star-making performance from Ana de Armas, and two of my absolute favourite lines of dialogue of the year:

"I read a tweet about a New Yorker article about you."

"What were the overheard words by the Nazi child masturbating in the bathroom?"

Not to mention that ridiculous (in a good way) doughnut monologue.

It was a clever take on the genre to essentially show us what happened so early, and to tie our perspective to Marta's instead of Blanc's, with the result being that the audience is left kind of rooting for the "brilliant detective" to fail. That being said, I did assume all along that there would end up being more to the story, and in particular that the naloxone didn't disappear from her bag by accident (plus, there was always the dangling plot threat of who hired Blanc and why). The reveal at the end wasn't necessarily shocking, but it was satisfying, which I think is more important. And that final shot was just perfect.

The doughnut hole monologue and the "nazi child masturbating in the bathroom" were favorites of mine, too.  I agree with your last paragraph, too. 

I knew since situation around his death was revealed so early on that there was going to be an interesting twist coming and I did wonder what Ransom was up to, but, I have a hard time retaining things and I tend to miss little details, so I rarely figure anything out early. 

This was actually funnier than I expected it to be.  It had the look of an artsy type of film and I tend to be a bit leery of those, having been disappointed many times before, but wanted to see it because of the good reviews.  I loved it.  I got such a kick out of Daniel Craig's character.  All of them, really--especially Ana d Armas, whose character I had no idea would have such a big role, given how many big names were in the cast.  She did a great job, especially against some real Hollywood heavy weights.

I want to see it again so I can catch the little details that I missed the first time. 

[Joimiaroxeu]

I enjoyed it though I think they've could've trimmed it by 30 minutes.

Daniel Craig's accent was hard to take at times. I didn't mind the cornpone accent he did in Logan Lucky but I don't know what he was going for here. Maybe if this turns into a series of films as rumored he'll have the opportunity to do more work on it with a speech coach.

I'm also still curious about the Game of Thrones-ish Iron Throne imagery of various people  sitting in front of that wheel of knives. What that some kind of inside joke?

Quote

I was distracted by seeing Dave Chappelle in this, but it turns out it's not him.  Doppelganger for sure.

I just learned that "Lakeith Stanfield looks like Dave Chappelle" is a thing. I don't think they look anything alike. Maybe Chappelle ten years ago before he bulked up but not now.

[AshleyN]

18 minutes ago, Shannon L. said:

I got such a kick out of Daniel Craig's character. 

Agreed. I get why the performance and the accent didn't work for everyone, but I thought he was hilarious. It was actually weird watching the trailer for No Time to Die and seeing him back in super-serious Bond mode so soon after watching this. Him and Chris Evans were clearly having a blast with roles so far removed from their big franchise characters.

[IWantCandy71]

12 hours ago, kitmerlot1213 said:

I admit that I had to look away during the puking scenes--I would then start to wonder how none of the cops were grossed out by the smell and then it would take me out of the scene--but then I just tried to ignore it and focus on Ransom's doing himself in by confessing to Fran's murder and then trying to kill Marta with a fake knife.

And I'm sorry for being massively catty but when did Toni Collette get so hard looking?  

I think cops have seen and continue to see (and have to also smell) far worse things than puke. 

I hate gross out humor. It's lowbrow, and it's really not funny.

Toni Collette has *always* been hard looking IMO.

But, I also think she's beautiful, in a  very unusual way. She has an interesting, expressive face. I think the actress who played Walt's wife (IDK her name ?) is probably considered more conventionally attractive, but I think TC up against her would totally steal the attention.

I forgot to mention that I did love the car chase line. And the guy was right, it was stupid.

[StatisticalOutlier]

15 hours ago, Joimiaroxeu said:

I just learned that "Lakeith Stanfield looks like Dave Chappelle" is a thing. I don't think they look anything alike. Maybe Chappelle ten years ago before he bulked up but not now.

I haven't seen him since Dave Chappelle's Block Party, or occasionally surfing by a rerun of Chappelle's Show, so it adds up for me. 

But speaking of distractions, I wasn't as distracted by Michael Shannon's wonky eye in this.

[MrsR]

The first trailer I saw after seeing this was the Bond trailer. Just when I adjusted to Craig as Bond up pops Marta as the current Bond girl.

When worlds collide whip lash!

[Enigma X]

I just saw it and enjoyed it. I, as many, saw the ending coming way before the end though.

[Empress1]

On 12/4/2019 at 12:12 AM, phalange said:

Loved the end, with Marta looking down on all of those greedy assholes from the balcony, drinking from the "my house, my rules" mug. I hope she did end up cutting all of them off (except the grandma, who was awesome).

Me too. I was leaning toward continuing to pay for the "liberal snowflake's" education until she revealed that she'd told the family about Marta's mother's undocumented status. Let her take out student loans.

This movie really drags white privilege in a way I enjoyed. None of them except Harlan were "self-made overachievers," as Lakeith Stanfield called them. Jamie Lee Curtis built her business with family money. Toni Colette's skin care lifestyle business wasn't successful (her vocal fry affectation was perfect). Michael Shannon didn't really do anything. Neither did Ransom. None of them were successful except Harlan. The family was basically a walking example of the saying that people with money should leave their heirs enough for them to do something, but not enough for them to do nothing.

On 12/4/2019 at 7:36 PM, Joimiaroxeu said:

I just learned that "Lakeith Stanfield looks like Dave Chappelle" is a thing. I don't think they look anything alike. Maybe Chappelle ten years ago before he bulked up but not now.

They don't look alike to me at all, and I didn't know this was a thing until right now.

On 12/4/2019 at 10:34 PM, IWantCandy71 said:

Toni Collette has *always* been hard looking IMO.

But, I also think she's beautiful, in a  very unusual way. She has an interesting, expressive face. I think the actress who played Walt's wife (IDK her name ?) is probably considered more conventionally attractive, but I think TC up against her would totally steal the attention.

I don't think either of them are attractive but I totally agree that Toni Collette is more interesting to look at.

On 12/4/2019 at 9:36 AM, kitmerlot1213 said:

And then during Don Johnson's character's speech about "how hard working immigrants are just like us", he's handing off he's used plate to Marta--DAMN!! 

That was an excellent little touch that got a reaction from my theater.

Daniel Craig's Foghorn Leghorn impersonation had me rolling - and then the movie called him on it! He seemed like he was having a ball playing Blanc, which I always like to see. I fell COMPLETELY out at "little Nazi child masturbating in the bathroom."

Edited December 9, 2019 by Empress1

[Joimiaroxeu]

Quote

They don't look alike to me at all, and I didn't know this was a thing until right now.

Yeah, it's enough of a thing that multiple google results come right up. I dunno, I guess it's  LaKeith's slim build but Dave doesn't look like that anymore. He's been working out a lot since he had his TV show apparently and has gotten quite muscular. Meanwhile, I suspect LaKeith's slimness is largely why he was cast as Snoop in Straight Outta Compton. He stood out to many as one of the few actors in the main cast who didn't much resemble the person they were playing.

[Angeleyes]

I was a bit surprised to see that Knives Out got multiple Golden Globe nominations this morning. I could maybe understand Best Ensemble, but most of the time a movie like this is forgettable during awards season. It was a fun movie, but not sure if I view it as award worthy. 

[Morrigan2575]

34 minutes ago, Angeleyes said:

I was a bit surprised to see that Knives Out got multiple Golden Globe nominations this morning. I could maybe understand Best Ensemble, but most of the time a movie like this is forgettable during awards season. It was a fun movie, but not sure if I view it as award worthy. 

I think the one benefit for Golden Globes, SAG and Emmy's (i think) over Oscars is that they have drama and comedy/musical groupings. So, a movie like Knives Out can actually win a Golden Globe (in theory) where it wouldn't even be nominated for an Oscar (generally).

[biakbiak]

1 hour ago, Angeleyes said:

I was a bit surprised to see that Knives Out got multiple Golden Globe nominations this morning. I could maybe understand Best Ensemble, but most of the time a movie like this is forgettable during awards season. It was a fun movie, but not sure if I view it as award worthy. 

This movie was basically designed to get GG nominations, specifically a huge cast of famous people that they HFP will get to meet, a light comedy vibe that they need to fill that separate category, and did well at the box office.

[IWantCandy71]

22 hours ago, Empress1 said:

I don't think either of them are attractive but I totally agree that Toni Collette is more interesting to look at.

Yep.

And I saw a pic with DC and CE standing beside each other in a promo. With all the DJ and CE "father and son" talk, to me...Daniel and Chris look far more related in terms of bone structure and coloring. Though I suppose DC isn't old enough to play CE's father, but they could pass as bio relatives of some sort.

[Jillibean]

On 12/4/2019 at 8:07 AM, vavera4ka said:

I could have done without “current events”. The setting and the tone were pretty timeless. Technology used here and there puts it into “our times” but doesn’t spoil it. The zeitgeist jokes do. 

While I agree about the timelessness, and I went into this hoping it would be more early to mid 1900s like a Christie novel, I thought the current events were really important in setting up the context of what was going on. This was a murder mystery, but it was also ultimately a movie about Marta‘s handling of this situation, and the current culture and the family’s social standing as opposed to her social standing in present day American society played a big role in that. The contradiction of the family members telling Marta she was family and they would take care of her while excluding her from the funeral and having no idea what country her family from was from was disturbing in how realistic it was. The scene of Richard “rewarding” Marta for being a “good immigrant” by allowing her to agree with him that illegal immigrants deserve to be punished was also brilliant for both character understanding and societal reflection in general. Handing her the plate was just the cherry on the sundae. I thought it was sad but important that the movie suggested that even the family members who believed they had enlightened views or were allies quickly turned when they had anything to lose. To me, part of what made this a really good movie was that it wasn’t just a murder mystery, but social commentary portrayed through an engaging plot. 

I knew as soon as Go was brought up that we’d be dealing with another layer of some kind, and Ransom’s specific statement that his grandfather had remarked that Marta was better at Go than he was alerted me to the fact that he was not going to be a good guy. 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Critics' Choice Award nominations:

Best Acting Ensemble

Best Original Screenplay – Rian Johnson

Best Comedy

[SandyToes]

On 11/27/2019 at 9:38 PM, Proclone said:

And I hate to be that person, but as a nurse I can say the plot actually made no freaking sense. 

We caught that too, but from a different perspective.  A good dose of morphine main-lined like that has an almost instantaneously happy effect. 

I DID appreciate that every time I thought the film would trot out the typical movie trop, they did NOT!  Nice little twists, and lots of Christopher Plummer.  That man does not age!  (He was in an excellent mystery movie - The Silent Partner - with Elliot Gould back in the 70's and was horribly creepy (and gorgeous!) in that. Great film if you can find it. One horrifically graphic scene, though.)

[tennisgurl]

That was a ton of fun, no one seems to make old fashioned Who Dunnit movies anymore, so as a fan of those kinds of books/movies, this was right up my ally. So many references to classic Agatha Christie-esc mysteries, right down to the premise (bunch of rich weirdos sucking up to and hating a wealthy patriarch who suddenly dies under mysterious circumstances) of the thing. The one that really killed me in how I didnt notice is the dying house keeper saying the "It was YOU" thing and that being misunderstood and she was actually saying "Hugh" is SUCH a Christie style murder mystery thing, I cant believe I missed it! The mystery itself was pretty good, and it does kind of darkly make me laugh that if only Christopher Plummer had just listened to Marta and let her call an ambulance, he would have been fine and all of this could have been avoided! But no, drama llama mystery guy had to instantly come up with a super elaborate cover up that ended with him slitting his own throat! I did like the twist on the typical mystery that we knew almost right away what happened, and we are basically watching someone try to cover up the murder instead of focusing on the detective trying to solve the case, but then of course, in true Christine fashion, there was a twist! 

There was also a lot of interesting subtext here about immigrants, with Marta and the Thornbys being kind of a parallel to the relationship between immigrants and the wealthy white establishment. There was a lot of hemming and hawing about who are "good immigrants" and who are "bad immigrants" and how the immigrants want to take what is "owed to them" even if they really did next to nothing to really earn it and "their ancestral land" (from the 80s!) and that sometimes even people that bend over backwards to show themselves to be allys can turn on them when the chips are down, and how often the attitudes towards immigrants can range from vicious to condescending. And then in the end, Marta ended up being the one who got everything, basically by being a good, hard working person. It was also interesting that, even though grandpa mystery did clearly care deeply for Marta, if he had just listened to her and trusted in her as a medical professional, instead of taking over instantly, he would have been fine!

What a great cast, everyone really shined, although I wish that in the second half they had spent more time on the family and developed them a bit more, I felt like when we left the house we sort of left the tension until the very end. I know they wanted to focus on Marta, but with such a rich ensemble, I wanted at least a few more scenes with everyone interacting. I also think they might have gone a little too hard on making Marta the best and most wonderful and purest good person to ever exist, but the actress did a good job at still making her seem like a real person, and I guess any halfway decent person looks pretty saintly next to the rouges gallery that was the Thornbys. 

Edited December 12, 2019 by tennisgurl

[foxfreakinmulder]

I thought it was fun. I enjoyed the cast and had a few laughs. The "cough" car chase was great. But I hate gross humor, and puke the most, so I could've done without that at the end. I love a good who done it but prefer the old who done it movies where you didn't know until the very end when the detective puts all the pieces together. But it wasn't a sequel so yay!

[TobinAlbers]

My mom is an Agatha Christie nut so she was all over this and I found myself thoroughly enjoying it as well.  Rolled my eyes a bit at DC's southern accent for Benoit but ended up going with it and was all in on him by the end (although I was expecting some kind of twist where he dropped the affected southern accent for his native accent to reveal hat he was either a) evil and in on the murder somehow or b) used the southern affectation to lure people into false security that he was a dumb hick. Glad he really was southern and pretty good at his job. Would love to see more movies with him as the detective on the case.

Two questions I had:

- How did Harlan's portrait change over the course of the movie? I tried to note all the ways it could change (expression, what he was holding) but didn't track anything. Apparently, there were subtle changes.

- Did Harlan know that Marta was being framed for his murder and that Ransome did it?  I feel like that as soon as he realized Marta could not find the Naproxen that he realized something was amiss.  Marta mixing up the vials is one thing but for the antidote to be conveniently missing from her bag? Not so coincidental. He also knew that Ransom was the only one who knew Marta would inherit everything and thus would have a reason to frame her AND that because Ransom had been his researcher once upon a time he would know how to plot all of this.  And I also think that Harlan, ultimately, was tired and weary (I think of talk Benoit had with Harlan's mother Wanatta) of his family and his life. Believing that his number was up, Harlan didn't pull to life, but leaned into death but wanted to make darn sure that Marta didn't go down for it which is why he pre-empted her 'accidental murder' by killing himself. He'd know that the overdose of morphine would show in his toxicology report but if he killed himself first *maybe* that technicality would protect her from losing the inheritance.   All this is to say, I think Harlan knew at the very least that Marta was being framed and that he was ready to die so he did his best to protect her in the end.

[PaulaO]

I saw this over the weekend and in the words of Blaine Edwards and Antoine Merriweather “hated it.”  It was so stagey.  There really was no mystery.  Not one likable character, most likely intentional, and Daniel Craig was ridiculous with that southern accent.  The scene with the rants about illegal immigrants was so obvious and trite.  I hated this movie.

[ribboninthesky1]

On 12/11/2019 at 9:48 PM, Jillibean said:

I thought it was sad but important that the movie suggested that even the family members who believed they had enlightened views or were allies quickly turned when they had anything to lose. To me, part of what made this a really good movie was that it wasn’t just a murder mystery, but social commentary portrayed through an engaging plot. 

Agreed.  I thought Meg came out the worst of them all because she was such a fair weather "friend" when it came down to it.  At least Ransom didn't pretend to care about the staff.   

Chris Evans' performance reminded me of his role in Fierce People, so I wasn't surprised by the reveal. 

I have to confess - I wasn't 100% on Marta's side until she helped Fran.  It was for naught, but I didn't completely trust Marta's perspective for a good bit of the film.  Especially since I felt Marta reacted a bit too slowly about calling 911 when she realized the drugs were "switched" and the Naxwhatever wasn't in her bag. 

[raven]

Chris Evans' dog has his own Knives Out sweater

 

[MisterGlass]

I'm glad I didn't know about the vomit in advance, or I might not have gone to see it.  I thought it was entertaining and also put it down as a solid B.  It's more social satire/mystery satire than it is an outright comedy.  Once I realized that I was okay with how it went.  I enjoyed it more than some other comedy mysteries like Murder by Death. 

To some extent it reminded me of Gosford Park and it's upstairs/downstairs contrast between masters and servants.  This is the American equivalent, and it was less forlorn.

I wouldn't mind seeing Daniel Craig as this character again.  Though I have to say, Jamie Lee Curtis was my favorite in this.  I saw Joseph Gordon Levitt's name in the cast list; I don't know if his part was cut or if I completely missed him.

As far as LaKeith Stanfield and younger Dave Chappelle, I did notice some resemblance in this movie.  It's around the eyes and nose, and a little bit in the neutral expression.  I think it's clearer in a three quarter profile than it is head on.  See these two images for example - Stanfield and Chappelle.

[Eve93]

I didn't understand one thing... If someone could explain this I'd be grateful...

Ransom switched the morphine and the other drug by swapping out the medicines from one vial to the other leaving the labels intact? So that Marta gives the wrong medicine to Harlan

But in the end, Blanc mentions that she was a good nurse and unknowingly still gives him the right medicine & that he didn't die because of the morphine. 

How exactly did she give him the "right" medicine?? The medicines were switched right??

[Irlandesa]

19 minutes ago, Eve93 said:

How exactly did she give him the "right" medicine?? The medicines were switched right??

His theory is that there was a subtle difference in the look/consistency of the medicine and that she instinctually (based on her knowledge) reached for the right "looking" medication even though the labels were wrong.  

[Ceindreadh]

On 1/1/2020 at 5:11 AM, MisterGlass said:

I'm glad I didn't know about the vomit in advance, or I might not have gone to see it.  I thought it was entertaining and also put it down as a solid B.  It's more social satire/mystery satire than it is an outright comedy.  Once I realized that I was okay with how it went.  I enjoyed it more than some other comedy mysteries like Murder by Death. 

To some extent it reminded me of Gosford Park and it's upstairs/downstairs contrast between masters and servants.  This is the American equivalent, and it was less forlorn.

I wouldn't mind seeing Daniel Craig as this character again.  Though I have to say, Jamie Lee Curtis was my favorite in this.  I saw Joseph Gordon Levitt's name in the cast list; I don't know if his part was cut or if I completely missed him.

As far as LaKeith Stanfield and younger Dave Chappelle, I did notice some resemblance in this movie.  It's around the eyes and nose, and a little bit in the neutral expression.  I think it's clearer in a three quarter profile than it is head on.  See these two images for example - Stanfield and Chappelle.

I think that Joseph Gordon Levitt did the voice on the drama being listened to on a laptop. IIRC, he never appeared on screen. 

[Growsonwalls]

I saw this tonight. I enjoyed it a lot. I really enjoyed the all-star ensemble. Disagree that they should have focused on Harlan's family -- I thought the movie did the smart thing by focusing so much on Marta's POV. This way we could root for Marta even though she believed herself to have been guilty for Harlan's death. I thought Ana de Armas did a terrific job exuding goodness and kindness, which is hard to do. I ended the movie confident Marta would do good things with the money.

Christopher Plummer, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Don Johnson I thought were acting standouts. I didn't actually care that much for Daniel Craig -- thought the Southern accent was inconsistent and for this sort of thing to work he should have given off a more homespun/clever vibe. As it was it was sort of James Bond with a Southern accent.

As for Harlan's death I think he always wanted to kill himself. He was tired of his hateful family and had set up his will to help Marta. 

[callie lee 29]

Just saw it and loved it. There was quite a bit of people in the theater and not only were they laughing and actually talking to the screen in the theater people were talking about in the lobby afterwards - everyone walked out enjoying it. I actually diss not really notice really any political stuff other that the one scene which was pretty outright. I guess what everyone is referring to I jus saw as a necessary plot point to set up the story.(though if one more person referenced nazi kid masturbating to read deer one more time I was going to pee myself).

[Milburn Stone]

I can't believe it's even possible to make a mystery movie this good anymore. Shit, I can't believe it's possible to make a mainstream movie this good in any genre anymore.

There is reason to live.

[Athena]

Rhian Johnson and Daniel Craig should keep making Benoit Blanc movies. 

An original movie franchise is rare now and it's even rarer to see good mystery movies. 

[Rickster]

I dunno, as someone who complains about the lack of adult movies to see, I wanted to like this more than I did. Interesting plot, surprised by but not put off by Craig’s accent, but something seemed to be missing. I thought the movie dragged a bit, and I think the issue was a script that for a 2 hour movie focused too much on plot mechanics and not enough on characterization except maybe in the case of Marta. Everyone was like a cardboard caricature.

I’d call it a solid B. Mostly I spent the movie thinking I could see more interesting material on Masterpiece Mysteries or Britbox.

[Archery]

Just saw this. Loved it!  I hadn’t realized until now how much I needed an enjoyable, funny, entertaining, smart, witty movie. No tortured souls. Just great comedy, and a neat, no cheating mystery. I’ve missed stuff like this since shows like Murder She Wrote went off the air and gave way to dark!hero with tragic backstory. 
 

Then only thing that took me out of the plot was that the Norfolk County Medical Examiner’s office had a Marlborough, Massachusetts address on the letterhead. Marlborough is in Middlesex County (LOL). 

Edited January 6, 2020 by Archery

[raven]

Sequel is being planned

Quote

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the director confirmed during Lionsgate’s pre-Golden Globes party that he is already developing a follow-up that centers on Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc, the aggressively Southern detective who can sniff out a good mystery. The sequel will follow Blanc as he works through a different case, which will hopefully be as star-studded as the first. If given his way, production can start within the next year. Johnson’s producing partner Ram Bergman also confirmed that Craig was eager to reprise both his role and his confounding Southern accent.

 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

BAFTA nomination:

Original Screenplay - Rian Johnson

[Schweedie]

I think my one favourite things about this may have been how their stories differed slightly during interrogations just out of ignorance - like, Linda: "Her family's from Ecuador" and then Richard: "Her family's from Paraguay". And also the visuals they cut in, like when Linda was talking about her dad they showed her and her family behind Harlan and the cake and when Walt was talking, it was his family. 

[xaxat]

I really enjoyed this movie. One big reason is that, with the exception of Ana de Armas (who had to play Marta straight), it looked like the cast had a blast chewing the scenery.

Eat shit, eat shit, eat shit. . . 

Oh, and the mystery was really good.

 

[mariah23]

I just got back from seeing this movie and I loved it!

I was thinking at the end of the film when Marta was looking down at the family, should she cut off all of the family (yes, I really think she should or if not, make them work for it)?  I mean if Meg is in the latter half of her college education, maybe Marta could pay the rest of her tuition with stipulations like going into the Peace Corps or Americorps.  Also, I thought the Nazi masturbating child must be sent to be deprogrammed.

[Growsonwalls]

23 hours ago, mariah23 said:

I just got back from seeing this movie and I loved it!

I was thinking at the end of the film when Marta was looking down at the family, should she cut off all of the family (yes, I really think she should or if not, make them work for it)?  I mean if Meg is in the latter half of her college education, maybe Marta could pay the rest of her tuition with stipulations like going into the Peace Corps or Americorps.  Also, I thought the Nazi masturbating child must be sent to be deprogrammed.

I think Marta hardened once she realized that Meg told the family about her mom's immigration situation. With that being said Marta's goodness is also the reason she was left with the money and I think we're confident that Marta will not be unkind or vengeful. 

[Milburn Stone]

12 hours ago, Growsonwalls said:

I think Marta hardened once she realized that Meg told the family about her mom's immigration situation. With that being said Marta's goodness is also the reason she was left with the money and I think we're confident that Marta will not be unkind or vengeful. 

This post reminds me how crucial Ana de Armas's performance was to the whole enterprise. Without our belief in Marta's goodness, our wish for her to come out OK (or better than OK) in the end, nothing would have meant anything. A lesser actress might have failed to instill this belief. Or gone the Mary Sue route, which would have been equally destructive. de Armas made the character real.

Edited January 12, 2020 by Milburn Stone

[xaxat]

13 hours ago, Growsonwalls said:

I think Marta hardened once she realized that Meg told the family about her mom's immigration situation. With that being said Marta's goodness is also the reason she was left with the money and I think we're confident that Marta will not be unkind or vengeful. 

I took the fact that Marta decided to look down on the family while drinking out of the "My house, my rules" mug as her indicating that any conversation was over and she was going to follow Harlan's intent. "Not a red cent."

Except for Great Nana.

I look forward to watching this again when it streams. I'm sure there are a lot of little details I missed. Like how many countries Marta is from.

[Shannon L.]

2 hours ago, Milburn Stone said:

This post reminds me how crucial Ana de Armas's performance was to the whole enterprise. Without our belief in Marta's goodness, our wish for her to come out OK (or better than OK) in the end, nothing would have meant anything. A lesser actress might have failed to instill this belief. Or gone the Mary Sue route, which would have been equally destructive. de Armas made the character real.

I totally agree.  I believed every emotion that she was portraying.  I was really impressed with her.